This application is based upon and claims priority of Japanese patent application nos. 2001-203835, filed Jul. 4, 2001, and 2001-217754 and 2001-217753 filed Jul. 18, 2001, the contents being incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to a door structure for a vehicle.
A car body side portion has a passenger entrance/exit opening opened and closed by a side door. The side door mostly has a front side door for the front seat and a rear side door for the rear seat. In some cases, the opening opened and closed by the front and rear side doors does not have a so-called center pillar and accordingly forms one large opening continuous in the car body back-and-forth direction (e.g., see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-20423).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-20423 (U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,836) discloses a door structure in which the front side door opens backward and the rear side door opens forward. A structure in which the rear end of a front side door in a closed state overlaps the front end of a rear side door in a closed state to cover it externally in the direction of car body width, that is, a door structure in which the rear side door can be opened provided that the front side door is opened, is also disclosed. This door structure is employed in small trucks having a large car body strength.
Recently, in order to improve safety in case of side collision where the car body is collided at the side, techniques for preventing the side door from being largely displaced internally in the direction of car body width, i.e., into the car compartment, are often employed. As such technique for regulating large displacement of the side door into the car compartment in the case of side collision, one called a catcher pin structure is available (e.g., see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-40259). According to this structure, a projection serving as an engaging portion is formed on either one of the side door and car body, and a hole serving as an engaging target portion to engage with the projection is formed in the other one of the side door and car body. When side collision occurs, the engaging portion and the engaging target portion engage with each other so the side door engages with the car body better.
More specifically, according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-40259, an engaging pin projects backward from the rear end of a rear door, and the corner of the periphery of the wheel housing of the rear fender is reinforced by a reinforcement. An engaging pin 10 and an engaging hole are formed at this corner. The engaging hole engages with the engaging pin 10 so that the movement of the rear end of the rear door forward and toward the car compartment is regulated. The lower end of the reinforcement is connected to the side sill.
An impact bar is sometimes disposed in the side door to extend in the back-and-forth direction of the car body, in order that deformation of the side door itself is prevented as much as possible (e.g., see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-250370).
More specifically, according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-250370, impact bars are provided to the lower portion and upper end, respectively, in the door main body. The lower impact bar corresponding to the height of the fender is arranged on the outer side in the direction of thickness of the door with respect to the upper impact bar, and is inclined downward to the back.
In a passenger car-type vehicle, it has been discussed to employ a structure in which an opening in a car body side portion, which is opened and closed by front and side rear doors, forms one large opening continuous in the back-and-forth direction. A passenger car, however, does not often have a sufficiently large car body strength when compared to a truck, and it is important how to prevent or reduce effectively a large deformation of a side door into the car compartment in the case of side collision. Particularly, when a high-rigidity vehicle side member such as a center pillar does not exist, it is preferable to improve the rigidity of the front and rear side doors in the vicinity of their boundary.
The present invention has been made in consideration of the above situation, and has as its object to provide a door structure for a vehicle, in which when a door is open, a large partition-less opening can be formed in a car body side portion, while the strength of the car body side portion can be ensured against an impact applied to the car body side portion in case of side collision or the like.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a door structure for a vehicle, in which when an opening opened and closed by front and rear side doors is continuous in the back-and-forth direction, the rigidity of the front door, particularly the rigidity of the front and rear side doors in the vicinity of their boundary, is increased, so deformation into the car compartment can be prevented or reduced effectively.
In order to achieve the above objects, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, there is provided a door structure for a vehicle, in which one opening (1) formed in a car body side portion and continuous in a back-and-forth direction is opened and closed by a front side door (11) and rear side door (12), and which has a lap portion (15) where a rear end of the front side door (11) and a front end of the rear side door (12) overlap each other in a direction of car width when the front and rear side doors (11, 12) are closed, wherein at the lap portion (15), the rear end of the front side door (11) overlaps the front end of the rear side door (12) to be located on an outer side in the direction of car width with respect to the front end of the rear side door (12), a front impact bar (27) extending in the back-and-forth direction of the car body is disposed in the front side door (11), and a rear end of the front impact bar (27) extends to the lap portion (15).
According the above arrangement, when side collision occurs, the front impact bar itself prevents or reduces deformation of the front side door toward the car compartment. In addition, the rear end of the front impact bar extends to the overlapping portion with the rear side door, that is, to a high-rigidity portion. Thus, a large deformation of the front side door into the car compartment is further prevented or reduced while the rigidity of the front and rear side doors in the vicinity of their boundary is increased.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a reinforcing member (25) is disposed in the front end of the rear side door (12) to extend in a vertical direction, a rear impact bar (26) is disposed in the rear side door (12) to extend in the back-and-forth direction, and a front end of the rear impact bar (26) extends to the reinforcing member (25).
According the above arrangement, when side collision occurs, the rear impact bar itself prevents or reduces large deformation of the rear side door toward the car compartment. In addition to an increase in rigidity of the lap portion, the front end of the rear impact bar extends to the high-rigidity reinforcing portion. Thus, a large deformation of the rear side door into the car compartment is further prevented or reduced.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the rear end of the front impact bar (27) and the front end of the rear impact bar (26) extend to the lap portion (15) or to a portion in the vicinity of the lap portion (15) to be close to each other.
According to the above arrangement, the front and rear impact bars can be disposed close to each other, that is, the rigidity of the front and rear side doors in the vicinity of their boundary is increased, and a side-colliding force is received by both the front and rear impact bars as much as possible. Thus, a large deformation of the side door into the car compartment can be prevented or reduced.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the reinforcing member (25) forms a closed section, and the front end of the impact bar (26) is bonded to that portion of the reinforcing member (25) which forms the closed section, to abut against it externally in the direction of car width.
According to the above arrangement, an external force acting on the rear impact bar in the case of side collision is received by the reinforcing member as well. Thus, deformation of the side door, particularly of the rear side door, into the car compartment can be prevented further effectively.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the rear end of the front impact bar (27) overlaps that portion of the reinforcing member (25) which forms the closed section in the direction of car width.
According to the above arrangement, an external force acting on the front impact bar in the case of side collision is also received by the reinforcing member. Thus, deformation of the front side door into the car compartment can be prevented or reduced further effectively.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a reinforcing member (25) is disposed in the front end of the rear side door (12) to extend in a vertical direction to form a closed section, and the rear end of the front impact bar (27) extends to a portion in the vicinity of the reinforcing member (25).
According to the above arrangement, an external force acting on the front impact bar in the case of side collision is also received by the front end of the rear side door reinforced by the reinforcing member. Thus, deformation of the front side door into the car compartment can be prevented or reduced further effectively.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the rear side door (12) is swung about a hinge (14) provided at a rear end thereof as a center to open forward, the front side door (11) is swung about a hinge (13) provided at a front end thereof as a center to open backward, and in an overlapping state, the front end of the rear side door (12) is covered by the rear end of the front side door (11) externally in the direction of car width, so the rear side door (12) can be opened only when the front side door (11) is open.
According to the above arrangement, the front and rear side doors form a so-called double-leafed hinged-type structure. This is preferable, when both the front and rear side doors are opened, for opening the car body side portion very large. This is also preferable in preventing the rear side door from being opened accidentally.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, in a closed state, the rear side door (12) is locked on the car body at the front end thereof, and in the closed state, the front side door (11) is locked on the front end of the rear side door (12).
According to the above embodiment, the front side door can be locked on the car body through the rear side door.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a lower end of the opening (1) forms a side sill (2), an upper end of the opening (1) forms a side end of a roof panel (3), and in the closed state, the rear side door (12) is locked on the side sill (2) and the side end of the roof panel (3).
This arrangement is preferable to make the locking operation firm when the rear side door is to be locked on the car body with its upper and lower portions.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a lower end of the opening (1) forms a side sill (2), that portion of the side sill (2) which is in the vicinity of the lap portion (15) forms a projection projecting partly upward, and a retractor (29) for a seat belt (28) is disposed in the projection.
This arrangement is preferable in firmly attaching the retractor to the car body, and in securing a space for attracting the retractor as well.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the lap portion (15) of the front side door (11) or a portion in the vicinity thereof has an engaging portion (41) which engages with the car body externally in the direction of car width, when the front side door (11) is closed, to regulate the front side door (11) from being displaced inwardly in the direction of car width.
According to the above arrangement, when side collision occurs, the engaging portion engages with the car body. The position of the engaging portion is set at a high-rigidity portion, e.g., in the vicinity of the overlapping portion with the rear side door. Thus, a large displacement of the front side door into the car compartment is prevented or reduced.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the lap portion (15) of the rear side door (12) or a portion in the vicinity thereof has an engaging portion (31) which engages with the car body externally in the direction of car width, when the rear side door (12) is closed, to regulate the rear side door (12) from being displaced inwardly in the direction of car width.
According to the above arrangement, when side collision occurs, the engaging portion engages with the car body. The position of the engaging portion is set at a high-rigidity portion, e.g., in the vicinity of the overlapping portion with the front side door. Thus, a large displacement of the rear side door into the car compartment is prevented or reduced.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the lap portion (15) of the front side door (11) or a portion in the vicinity thereof has an engaging portion (41) which engages with the car body externally in the direction of car width, when the front side door (11) is closed, to regulate the front side door (11) from being displaced inwardly in the direction of car width, and the lap portion (15) of the rear side door (12) or a portion in the vicinity thereof has an engaging portion (31) which engages with the car body externally in the direction of car width, when the rear side door (12) is closed, to regulate the rear side door (12) from being displaced inwardly in the direction of car width.
According to the above arrangement, when side collision occurs, the engaging portion engages with the car body. The position of the engaging portion is set at a high-rigidity portion, e.g., in the vicinity of the overlapping portion of the front and rear side doors. Thus, a large displacement of the rear and front side doors into the car compartment is prevented or reduced.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the car body has an engaging target portion (38, 49) to engage with the engaging portion (31, 41).
This arrangement is preferable in making engagement of the engaging portion and the car body more firm.
In the above arrangement, the engaging portion (31, 41) and the engaging target portion (38, 49) are fitted with each other. Hence, one of the engaging portion and the engaging target portion can be a projection (31, 41), and the other one of the engaging portion and the engaging target portion can be a hole to fit on the projection (catcher pin structure).
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a lower end of the opening (1) forms a side sill (2) extending in the back-and-forth direction to serve as a car body strength member, the side sill (2) having the engaging target portion (38, 39) in the vicinity of the lap portion (15), the side sill (2) being formed such that that portion thereof which is in the vicinity of the lap portion (15) partly projects upward, and a retractor (29) for a seat belt (28) is disposed at the partly projecting position of the side sill (2).
This arrangement is preferable in positioning the engaging target portion in the vicinity of that portion of the side sill which is to have a higher rigidity and which is to form an upward projection, so large displacement of the side door into the car compartment is prevented or reduced. This arrangement is also preferable in attaching the retractor to the car body firmly, and in maintaining a space for attaching the retractor.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the rear side door (12) is swung about a hinge (14) provided at a rear end thereof as a center to open forward, the front side door (11) is swung about a hinge (13) provided at a front end thereof as a center to open backward, and in an overlapping state, the front end of the rear side door (12) is covered by the rear end of the front side door (11) externally in the direction of car width, so the rear side door (12) can be opened only when the front side door (11) is open.
This arrangement is preferable when the front and rear side doors are to form a so-called double-leafed hinged door-type structure, so when both the front and rear side doors are opened, the car body side portion can be opened very largely. This arrangement is also preferable in preventing the rear side door from being opened carelessly.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, in a closed state, the rear side door (12) is locked on the car body at the front end thereof, and in the closed state, the front side door (11) is locked on the front end of the rear side door (12).
According to this arrangement, the front side door can be locked on the car body through the rear side door.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a lower end of the opening (1) forms a side sill (2), an upper end of the opening (1) forms a side end of a roof panel (3), and in the closed state, the rear side door (12) is locked on the side sill (2) and the side end of the roof panel (3).
This arrangement is preferable when locking the rear side door on the car body at its upper and lower portions, so the locking operation can become firm.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the front end of the rear side door (12) is reinforced by a reinforcing member (25) extending long throughout almost an entire length of the rear side door (12) in a vertical direction.
This arrangement is very preferable when remarkably increasing the rigidity of the portion in the vicinity of the lap portion, so the various types of effects described above are achieved more effectively.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a front end of the front impact bar (27) is disposed to be higher than the rear end thereof, and a rear end of the rear impact bar (26) is disposed to be higher than the front end thereof, the rear end of the front impact bar (27) and the front end of the rear impact bar (26) are arranged close to each other, and the front end of the front impact bar (27) and the rear end of the rear impact bar (26) are at substantially the same height.
According to the above arrangement, when the door is closed, a large, partition-less opening can be formed in the car body side portion. Also, the strength of the car body side portion can be ensured against an impact which is applied to the car body side portion in the case of side collision or the like.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the front impact bar (27) is arranged to be inclined downward to the right from the front end thereof to the rear end thereof, and the rear impact bar (26) is arranged to be inclined upward to the right from the front end thereof to the rear end thereof, so as to form a substantial V shape when seen from the car body side portion.
This arrangement can increase the door rigidity.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the front end of the front side door (11) is supported to the car body by a pair of hinges (13) vertically spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, and the front end of the front impact bar (27) is attached between the hinges (13).
According to the above arrangement, the front end of the impact bar can be attached to a high-rigidity portion.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the rear end of the rear impact bar (26) is attached below a hinge (14) that supports the rear side door (12) at a rear end thereof.
This arrangement can increase the door rigidity below the hinge.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the car body side portion has a partition-less opening through which an inner side and outer side of a car compartment communicate with each other when the front side door (11) and rear side door (12) are closed.
According to this arrangement, the front door and rear door can form a double-leafed hinged door-type structure, so the opening of the car body side portion can make the passenger feel more open to the outside and can get on and off the car easily.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the rear end of the front side door (11) and the front end of the rear side door (12) have engaging portions (31, 41) that engage with each other when the front side door (11) and the rear side door (12) are closed.
According to this arrangement, the door can be held not to open when an impact is applied to the car body side portion in the case of side collision or the like.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the front impact bar (27) and the rear impact bar (26) are disposed below the engaging portions (31, 41).
This arrangement can increase the door rigidity below the engaging portions.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a reinforcing member (25) is provided in the front end of the rear side door (12) to extend in the vertical direction of the car body.
This arrangement can ensure the door strength.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, the front end of the rear impact bar (26) is attached to the reinforcing member (25).
This arrangement, together with the reinforcing member, can increase the door rigidity.
With the above arrangement as a premise, a door structure for a vehicle according to the present invention has the following arrangement. More specifically, a reinforcing member (44) is provided in the front end of the front side door (11) to extend in the vertical direction of the car body, the reinforcing member (44) being provided with an opening degree adjusting member (46) which controls the front side door (11) in a pulsed manner at predetermined opening degrees when the front side door (11) is being opened and closed.
According to this arrangement, the impact bar can be attached to a high-rigidity portion.
Other objects and advantages beside those discussed above shall be apparent to those skilled in the art from the description of a preferred embodiment of the invention which follows. In the description, reference is made to accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof, and which illustrate an example of the invention. Such example, however, is not exhaustive of the various embodiments of the invention, and therefore reference is made to the claims which follow the description for determining the scope of the invention.